The Worst Kind of Fear
by garnet eyes
Summary: The fight is supposed to occur with the individuals on the mission, not all the way back home. Set before original game. Cloud x Sephiroth.


Title: The Worst Kind of Fear

Author: Garnet Eyes

Archived: y-gallery. net, fanfiction. net

Summary: Usually when disaster strikes, it is while on the mission itself and not afterward.

Rating: T

Pairings: Implied Cloud x Sephiroth

Author Notes: I have not had the time to watch/play anything in the Final Fantasy VII universe beyond the original game and Advent Children. Therefore, I am certain there are inconsistencies between my writing and newer games or movies.

Disclaimers: Final Fantasy VII is owned by Squaresoft and I in no way, shape, or form profit off of my writing. This is simply for my own pleasure, and may at any time be removed and/or modified as I see fit.

...

Jade eyes stared placidly out at the surrounding buildings, a tired lethargy present in their Mako-infused depths. Fair was just as subdued for once, as if all of his life and energy had left him. It should have been unsettling, truly, but at this point both SOLDIERs were simply detached. The mission they had left for was not superfluous, by any means, but it had not required the presence of both military leaders. Rebel suppression could be complicated if the rebels were well organized and had a strong leader. Perhaps, contrary to the way that the frightened, nervous men and barely teen _boys_ had acted, this had all been thoroughly planned out. The President's son had been away on vacation for several weeks, not due to return until the end of the month, and as such the Turk elites were also absent. The highest ranking SOLDIERs had been called out, there was a week long training exercise that had removed almost two-thirds of the Midgar SOLDIER population, and the best special-ops and intelligence officers were all out on an undercover mission. The headquarters had only a handful of SOLDIER thirds guarding it alongside inexperienced soldiers and grunts. The main compound had been left wide open, little to any officer's knowledge.

Because of this bizarre, unprecedented occurrence that _somebody_ seemed to notice, there had been an insurgence of rebel activity. Half of the soldier dormitories had been reduced to rubble in explosions, several scientists lost their lives, and at least one Turk died to get the President to safety. Three SOLDIER thirds were critically injured and the number of dead soldiers was still being tallied. There was no knowledge yet of what may have been stolen. The labs were in disarray, although the extent of the damage there was being kept under wraps. Until the trucks of SOLDIERs returned, none of them would get any more information. It could be surmised, at the very least, that the backlash into the slums of Midgar would be horrendous.

"Hey, Sephiroth, he's okay."

Blinking, cat-like eyes turned to quietly regard the brunette sitting beside him. The words were low enough that the other SOLDIERs in the truck likely hadn't heard, but, analytical as always, the General refrained from replying in a way that could be construed as he honestly intended it.

"I hardly have time to consider such a thing when I have to come up with housing for troops and do not forget how quickly all SOLDIERs will be recalled and reassigned until Shinra is satisfied. The preparations involved in that alone require all of my resources."

As much as his chest lurched, there was simply nothing that the chief military officer of Shin-Ra's vast army could do to satisfy his own urgent need to _know_. The brunette beside him nodded, turning away to watch the buildings pass behind them. The remainder of the trip was silent, if not a little bit tense, before the checkpoint had them all marching out of the truck with dog tags displayed to be scanned.

The jumpy soldier standing alongside a dour-looking SOLDIER second quickly cleared them through, at which point it was a five minute drive to the center of the compound. Not wasting any time, the General stepped down from the back of the truck and quickly located the Turk stationed to wait for his arrival. In the corner of his mind, the SOLDIER noticed his second heading off on his own agenda. Pausing before the unseemly redhead Turk, Sephiroth turned back to the SOLDIERs disembarking from the parked truck before barking out orders that all the men quickly followed. The Turk grinned easily, turning away with full belief that the General would follow. As expected of the Turks, the redhead appeared completely unfazed by any of the surrounding damage.

"President won't be back for a few more days. Rufus is waiting for ya. 'M sure Hojo is, too."

The lank Turk snorted, as if inviting the SOLDIER to share in the joke. Sephiroth remained expressionless as he followed, unconcerned with any of what had been said. Judging from the redhead's apparent disrespect of the President's son, it wasn't hard to assume that he was one of the Turks who worked closely with the Shinra heir. Looks were deceiving in his case, or he chose to appear a mess so that he would be underestimated. It mattered little when something far more critical was on the silver-haired warrior's mind.

The strawberry blonde heir was waiting in the medical bay, safely stowed away in a doctor's office with the head Turk to his right and a bald Turk to his left. The redhead leaned against the wall as the door closed, nonchalant in both appearance and action. The other two Turks were standing in rigid posture, wary even now. The Shinra steepled his fingers and gave the SOLDIER a calculating look, but remained silent for some time. Finally, blue eyes flickered toward the long-haired Wutanese man to his right. With a bare nod, the Turk shifted away to retrieve a briefcase. In the space of a few moments, a closed case was left on the dark-grain wooden desk separating the blonde from the silver warrior.

"As you know, someone made a… unfortunate mistake. No information has leaked, baring anything that has been decoded en route to you. This is the casualty report thus far along with a synopsis of what has notably gone missing. The damage report is still being drawn up."

The briefcase was left for him to peruse, which the General sat down to do quietly. He quickly scanned through page after page of information, giving a critical eye to the missing vials of condensed Mako and the missing master materia. After a few minutes, jade eyes turned up toward the blonde and pale lips thinned.

"You are wondering if this was an inside job, I take it? That's what I think, too. Somebody who knew where important and expensive things were kept. We still can't be certain that anyone is missing or even if he was directly involved in this attack. That can't be known until cleanup has at least managed to catalogue all of the injured and dead. In the meantime, I think new security clearances may be necessary."

Barely a downward quirk of the lips met that implied order. More red tape was _just_ what everyone needed.

"I will look into it. One of the intelligence officers should contact you shortly. If need be, we can get several different people to create the coding. What of the captured rebels?"

The Shinra heir frowned and turned his attention toward the Turk to his right again.

"Tseng?"

Clearing his throat softly, the brunette addressed his superior loud enough for the rest of the room to hear.

"All dead. Those who had been contained killed themselves."

Sitting back against the chair, the SOLDIER kept his silence while the redhead near the door whistled.

"They're serious."

The long-haired brunette directed his next statement to his subordinate, although he continued watching the blonde.

"For what little good it does them."

Grunting, the younger Turk shifted against the wall behind him and resettled himself.

"To make an attack now would be suicide for their movement. Surely they realize this and there is slim chance of a follow up if we can rely on these men being marginally intelligent. The longer the period after the attack, the more likely of another – security will loosen up again over time and there's nothing that can be done about that. I have little worry that my life is at stake here and now. Concern yourself with organizing search parties and enforcement groups to head into the slums before the trail is gone. Any interference is to be dealt with accordingly. Scarlet may wish to speak with you about weapons before you send too many men out. I'll have Reno send you updates when we receive any."

Recognizing the dismissal, the General gracefully stood from his chair and walked to the door, leaving the paper documents on the wooden desk next to their carrying case. The young redhead grinned at him again as the silver warrior left, Mako tainted eyes alight in some bizarre mirth.

With a self-assured gait, the SOLDIER made his way out of the medical facilities and began his own observation of the current damage to the compound. Undoubtedly every available construction worker and architect would be pulled in to conceal all traces of this failing. It was amazing, the kind of work that the Shin-Ra could accomplish. Unfortunate that Shinra thought so little about the common people.

Fair was, surprisingly, organizing SOLDIERs to help search for survivors. The determined expression on his face forced a melancholy grimness to settle over the General as they passed one another without recognition. The damage was more severe in the usually less guarded soldier areas, owing to longer gaps in rounds and laxer tag-checking policies no doubt. The large hole in the side of the laboratories was impressive – there was likely a demolitions expert with the rebels. The smell of burnt flesh and rot was a heavy backdrop to the crisp scent of cut stone and hot metal permeating the air. Vaguely, Sephiroth wondered what pathetic cover-up would be used in the letters sent out to the next of kin when every soldier was accounted for.

"General Sephiroth, sir!"

Jade eyes glanced toward the intelligence officer to his left, although his steps did not pause as the warrior continued to peruse the damaged site. Taking his cue, the lank young brunette fell into step next to the head SOLDIER.

"There is a meeting scheduled for all of the military department heads in approximately two hours at 1400 hours when Heidegger arrives."

The silver-haired male inclined his head in recognition.

"Understood. Meeting place?"

The young brunette saluted sharply as he responded.

"Someone will retrieve you at the appointed time to bring you to an undisclosed location. Do you plan to be in any particular place, sir?"

Glancing at the pristine SOLDIER barracks with a slight frown, the General made a dismissive noise.

"I make no guarantees. Try my office first, though."

The intelligence officer paused then with a frown drawing his lips down.

"..Sir, no disrespect intended, but… have you seen military headquarters?"

Although there was no pause in his steps, the silver warrior began to change his chosen route.

"Then I suppose I will be out here with the rest of the soldiers dealing with damage control until a suitable office is created."

The young officer took his leave with another sharp salute, obviously intending to find someone else, and Sephiroth gave him no further thought. His mind became quickly preoccupied by the matter of sending SOLDIERs into the slums to scare the people in the lower city. It was a detestable duty, only made bearable by the simmering pain welling in his chest. In a tiny part of his thoughts, the General felt retribution was in order for his own personal losses. Buildings could be formed again and, for all of the hell-raising Hojo did, any chemicals could be recreated to exact specifications. What justice was there for the dead? Yes, they were soldiers, and yes, it was part of the job description that death was very possible, but an attack at night on a _dormitory_ full of _trainees_ was as cowardly as it proved effective. The military stood little chance against such measures.

A pale-blonde soldier scurried by on some mission to find someone and cat-like eyes trailed after the young soldier. The boy had a large gauze pad taped to his right cheek and two butterfly bandages on his left brow. More damage was probably hidden by the uniform. A muscular auburn-haired youth hurried by in the opposite direction, right arm in a cast from elbow to hand while a folder of papers was gripped tightly in his left hand. A large bruise covered half of his face. More soldiers passed by, all injured and all working. It was detestable, the way the Shin-Ra was using boys still in shock over what had happened.

One such injured individual approached the SOLDIER as he observed the headquarters building from the ground. If he was not mistaken, that hole in the wall fourteen stories up was exactly where his office was. So the rebels were sending some kind of message, were they?

"General, sir, Commander Fair wanted to see you right away by block E-6."

Silently, the silver-haired SOLDIER turned on heel and started off. E-6 was part of the dormitories. A weight like lead settled in the pit of his stomach as Sephiroth marched dispassionately toward his second. The knowledge of what he would find curdled his intestines but somehow hope remained.

Zackary was lifting away large chucks of rubble along with two other SOLDIERs, a team of doctors and nurses nearby in a hastily built field setup. Disregarding the body-less arm lying in his path, the head of SOLDIER made his way over to his friend. Mako blue eyes turned toward him with the most carefully blank expression Sephiroth thought he had ever seen adorning the brunette's face. All hope instantly crumbled and burned, as if it were never there. The only thing left to do was identify the body. He could mourn at a later date – preferably alone and with a moderate amount of alcohol.

Internally steeling himself, the silver warrior gracefully strode across the broken pavement. The dorm room that was being cleared had a forearm dangling out from under blood-stained sheets. The bunk below was hidden by the collapsed bed. A chalky, smudged uniform shirt was laying crumpled on the ground near the other set of bunks, looking ridiculously out of place in a room far worse for the wear. There were machines bleating out various statistics not far away while a few of the medical personnel worked frantically on a body mostly hidden from jade eyes. The gray pale of the skin of one bloody arm was plain to see and it was obvious that the soldier fighting for his life was in a losing battle.

Taking a moment to steady his mind, the silver-haired male walked slowly toward the makeshift treatment area. It would be… pleasant to see the boy alive one more time, if rather painful as well given the circumstances. The doctors and nurses ignored him during his approach, focused on the matter at hand, and Fair was too busy searching for anyone else to be much comfort with his boisterous nature. The paraffin skin was even more translucent than it appeared from a distance, in sharp contrast with the crimson smudges on the stark white garbs of the attending nurses. Black-gloved fingers twitched as the SOLDIER stepped closer, the lead in his gut solidifying into something horrible. The white of bone showed pierced through the skin of the chest, a laceration in the abdomen exposing the small intestine.

Cat eyes narrowed in relief as rusty brown hair was noted, at least comforted that nothing like this was happening to his sunshine. The boy was obviously struggling to hold on, regardless of the damage he had sustained, and Sephiroth could at least be content that Shin-Ra hired dutiful medical specialists. But all would be for not without a blood transfusion.

"Sephiroth..?"

Jade blinked, the only outward sign of surprise, before the SOLDIER slowly turned his attention from the nearly lifeless grunt. Off to the side of the doctors and nurses busily working on stabilizing the brunette, partially hidden by the machines and monitors, was a tiny blonde soldier. Exhaustion was written across childish features, azure eyes surrounded by deep bruises of weariness. Aside from a few minor plasters on the right side of his face and neck, the boy appeared whole.

Professionalism prevented the General from swooping down to personally check over the boy to his own satisfaction, although jade eyes very carefully observed the teen before him. It was easy to see the needle and tubing extending from the blonde's elbow, dark red with blood being given to the brunette soldier close by. The boy was, in typical form, doing anything to be helpful. Cat eyes softened before the SOLDIER stepped closer to the blonde.

"Strife."

Affection rumbled just under the surface of his voice, but he allowed himself nothing more in public. Tired eyes shut as the teen smiled, leaning against one of the machines at his side.

"I'm lucky. The bunk over mine caught and stacked. If there had been any shift, the joints would have bent and I would have been crushed. They're still going to observe me – I was trapped for a while but I think I'm alright."

The silver warrior nodded, silent and attentive for the moment while everyone around them was distracted.

"None of my roommates made it."

The statement was said without inflection, leading the SOLDIER to believe that the blonde was likely still in shock.

"I will get you a key to my apartment; I expect you to go there as soon as you are released."

Azure eyes reopened, head straightening away from the monitor it had been against.

"Worry about that later, sir. I'm better off than most people and I'm sure you have other things to do."

A smile tugged at the corners of pale lips, but the silver warrior remained outwardly dispassionate. True, he had much to attend to, but all else meant nothing when faced with what was truly important. Pausing a moment, the General quickly bent down to be on eye level with the seated soldier.

"Do not stress yourself. Everything will occur in due time, young Strife."

Tan lips wavered, a smile obviously wanting to break free.

"Thank you, sir."

Straightening with an imperceptible glance down at the blonde, Sephiroth turned away from the hastily constructed medic area and stalked calmly over to the SOLDIERs.

"Fair, I leave the rescue efforts in your hands."

For once serious Mako blue eyes regarded the older man, as if to ascertain his mental state. With his features so carefully blank, however, not even his closest living friend had the ability to tell what he was thinking.

"See to it that no one takes on more than he can handle."

Laughter appeared in blue eyes although the rest of Zackary's expression remained neutral.

"Leave it to me, sir."

Before the silver-haired male could do anything more, the redhead Turk appeared in the corner of his vision. Lax as ever, the sloppily dressed teen made a stop by the medics, taking a glance at the mostly dead soldier before heading back toward the half-hidden blonde. Decidedly uncomfortable with any Turk near his personal ray of sunshine and having noticed the file folder in the redhead's hand, the General followed the Turk.

"…surprised a shrimp like you came out on top. Are you sure you don't want to be a Turk?"

His naturally possessive side flaring to life, the SOLDIER stalked forward silent as a shadow. If the blonde became a Turk, he would forever be worryingly delicate to the silver warrior.

"I told the others the same thing I'll tell you: the only reason I'd ever consider being anything besides a SOLDIER is if I fail a part of the examination that means I can never be one. Save your pitch, sir. I'm really not interested."

Laughing, the redhead touched his own temple with his index finger.

"Just remember what's open for ya, pipsqueak."

Bringing the folder forward as he turned, the Turk thrust it toward the blank-faced SOLDIER.

"Can't sneak up on a Turk when you're giving off a killing intent like that."

Raising a thin silver brow, the General accepted the file and opened it. As he was perusing the report of total damaged sectors and estimated time to rebuild housing, a lank coffee-haired teen appeared, tags labeling him as a member of the intelligence division.

"General, sir, Heidegger arrived early. Please follow me."

Tucking the folder safely under his arm, the SOLDIER sent a pointed glance toward the Turk before he left.

"See to it that you stay your hand in this affair, Turk."

Mako tainted emerald eyes narrowed, recognizing both the intended reference toward the blonde soldier and the implied threat in the words. Surprisingly, the redhead held his tongue as the General stalked away, mentally preparing himself for the monstrous task of meeting with Heidegger. The only true consolation of the day was that his sunshine would be there waiting for him in the end.


End file.
